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Eddie Redmayne teases “moving” Fantastic Beasts and Where To Find Them script

Eddie Redmayne has said he was surprised by how moving the script for his new film Fantastic Beasts and Where To Find Them was.

Speaking to Entertainment Weekly about the new film, which was penned by J.K. Rowling, Redmayne said: “One of the things that I found quite extraordinary about the script when I read it is that it’s there are moments that feel like a thriller. There is a dark aspect to it. There is a kind of comedic quality to it, and sort of romance. We have all these different genres, and yet somehow J.K. Rowling has managed to weave them together.

“I think it’s surprising about how moving it is. All I have when I read scripts is that instinct, and I was really moved by it. So that should hopefully be surprising. And now I just ruined the surprise.”

Fantastic Beasts and Where To Find Them is the first of three stand-alone films in the Harry Potter universe about the life of Newt Scamander, the writer of one of Harry’s school text books.

In Harry Potter canon, Newt Scamander – who will be played by Oscar-winner Redmayne – was a famous magizoologist.

The new film will follow Newt as he travels to 1920s New York following his expulsion from Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. However, once there he becomes embroiled in a magical mess he could not have foreseen.

Redmayne also answered a fan-favourite question about what Hogwarts house he was in as part of the interview, revealing: “[I thought it] would be really depressing for me to find out that like I’m not actually Hufflepuff and then it sorted me with Hufflepuff. I literally was by myself at home and I yelped with excitement that I got Hufflepuff. I was like, ‘the magic exists’.”

Fantastic Beasts and Where To Find Them premieres in cinemas on November 18. Booking is open now.